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Pre-FDA food safety meeting generates 'passion'

United Fresh Produce Association members on Feb. 27 discuss the Food and Drug Administration's proposed regulations as part of the Food Safety Modernization Act. United Fresh plans to comment on the proposed rules at a Feb. 28 public hearing in Washington, D.C.

Photo by Courtesy United Fresh Produce Assn.

(UPDATED COVERAGE, Feb. 28) The Food and Drug Administration’s first meeting on proposed food safety rules will be Feb. 28-March 1, and a closer look at the proposed regulations has generated plenty of passion, one industry leader said.

Before the FDA meeting, the United Fresh Produce Association convened two working groups Feb. 27 in Washington, D.C., to discuss the FDA’s proposed rules. United Fresh officials will comment on the rules at the FDA’s Feb. 28 meeting, said Ray Gilmer, vice president of communications.

Gilmer said that the working groups — one addressing the produce safety rule and the other examining the preventive control safety rule for food facilities — had spirited discussions Feb. 27.

The groups exposed some concerns about FDA assumptions about the science of the proposed regulations, Gilmer said.

In testimony Feb. 28, David Gombas, United Fresh’s senior vice president of food safety and technology, said the industry remains concerned about exemptions for smaller operations. In addition, he said there are concerns on how the produce safety rule will relate to other rules coming from the FDA.

The FDA has public comment meetings on the proposed food safety rules, March 11 in Chicago and March 27 in Portland, Ore.

The United Fresh groups plan to meet online or in person just before each of those meetings

“It may depend on how much progress we’re making in the next couple of days,” Gilmer said Feb. 27.

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About the Author:

Tom Karst

Tom Karst is national editor for The Packer, covering issues of importance to the produce industry including immigration, farm policy and food safety.
He began his career with Vance Publishing Corp., The Packer's parent company, in 1984 as one of the founding editors of ProNet, a pioneering electronic news service for the produce industry. Tom has also served as markets editor for The Packer and editor of Global Produce magazine in his time at Vance Publishing, among other positions.
Tom is also the main author of Fresh Talk, www.tinyurl.com/freshtalkblog, an industry blog that has been active since November 2006.
Previous to Vance, Tom worked from 1982 to 1984 at Harris Electronic News, a farm videotext service based in Hutchinson, Kansas.
Tom has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism from Kansas State University, Manhattan.
He can be reached at tkarst@thepacker.com and 913-438-0769. Find Tom's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/tckarst.